ELEVEN Cebu-based labor groups have sought a P100 across-the-board minimum wage increase in Central Visayas.
The petition was filed before the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB 7) in Cebu City on Friday, March 3, 2023.
Petitioners urged the RTWPB 7 to grant a P100 wage increase for all the workers in the non-agriculture and agriculture sectors, service or retail establishments employing 15 workers or less, and manufacturing industries regularly employing less than 10 workers.
The daily minimum wage rates vary in Central Visayas. The National Wages and Productivity Commission (NWPC) groups the region's cities and municipalities in three classes, and the last wage increase took effect in June 2022.
Workers who belong to local government units (LGUs) under Class A receive P435 in the non-agriculture sector and P425 in the agriculture and non-agriculture sector with less than 10 employees.
The NWPC groups under Class A the cities of Carcar, Cebu, Danao, Lapu-Lapu, Mandaue, Naga and Talisay, and the municipalities of Compostela, Consolacion, Cordova, Liloan, Minglanilla and San Fernando or expanded Metro Cebu.
Under Class B, workers receive P397 in the non-agriculture sector and P392 in the agriculture and non-agriculture sector with less than 10 employees.
Class B comprises other cities not covered under Class A–Bais, Bayawan, Bogo, Canlaon, Dumaguete, Guihulngan, Tagbilaran, Tanjay and Toledo.
Workers in LGUs under Class C receive P387 in the non-agriculture sector and P382 in the agriculture and non-agriculture sector with less than 10 employees.
Not enough
Rene Alfar, a miner and union official at Carmen Copper Corp. in Toledo City, told SunStar Cebu that the current daily minimum wage of workers like him in his city is currently at P397, which he said is not enough.
"First of all, there are expenses for school, food, and fare. What about electricity and water? Let's divide the minimum wage right now. Is it enough? That is why some of my fellow workers are in debt,” said Alfar, vice president of the Ilaw–Buklod ng Manggagawa-United Miners of Carmen Copper (IBM-UMCC-WSN).
Protest
The petitioners also staged a protest in front of the Department of Labor and Employment in Central Visayas (Dole 7) office on Gorordo Avenue. They urged the agency to grant the wage increase, saying many ordinary workers are currently suffering from the high prices of basic commodities as a result of the soaring fuel prices and inflation rate.
Partido Manggagawa (PM) Cebu led the protest, and the group joined by members of IBM-UMCC-WSN, Sentro ng Nagkakaisa at Progresibong Manggagawa, Globalwear Employees Union-Piglas, Association of Globalwear Supervisory Employees Union–Piglas, Mepz Workers Alliance and Workers Organization of Lami Food.
The other protesters came from Prince Warehouse Club Mandaue Employees Union–LAW, Kepco Cebu Employees Union-Workers Solidarity Network, Ilaw at Buklod ng Manggagawa sa General Milling Corporation, and Bohol Alliance of Labor Organizations.
If the RTWPB 7 will grant the petition for wage increase, the maximum daily minimum wage in the region may increase to P535 in areas under Class A.
‘Recovery wage’
PM Cebu spokesperson Dennis Derige described their petition for wage increase as “recovery wage,” citing the current daily minimum wage in Central Visayas has already lost P76 in its actual value or purchasing power since October 2022.
Derige said that the wage increase will recover the purchasing power of the current daily minimum wage to offset the negative impact of inflation.
He said if inflation does not slow down, the actual value of the current minimum wage is projected to decrease in the upcoming months.
The Philippine Statistic Authority reported that the country’s inflation rate in January this year was at 8.1 percent. The inflation rate in Central Visayas dropped to 7.2 percent in the same month compared to the 8.5 percent regional inflation rate in December 2022.
Business sector
In a separate interview, Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI) president Charles Kenneth Co said that they are still waiting to receive notices from the RTWPB 7.
He said that the CCCI board has to consult first the business communities before they will state their position on the petition.
Meanwhile, Kelie Ko, president of the Mandaue Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said that it’s expected for labor unions and organizations to ask for an increase in wage considering the current economic situation and the inflation rate in the country.
However, he urged the RTWPB 7 to study the petition and also consider the plight of business communities, saying they are also struggling with the current inflation rate and high cost of fuel and commodities.
Ko added that the business communities are currently spending much on their operations but are still earning less.
In Feb. 14, 2023, Cebu Labor Coalition (Celac) and seven more labor groups filed a similar petition, requesting the RTWPB 7 of an additional P292.50 to the daily minimum wage for Central Visayas workers,
Celac also seeks an additional P1,000 to the current P5,500 monthly rate of domestic workers or kasambahay under the chartered cities and first-class municipalities. (EHP, KAL)